Minister for Employment Eric Abetz today announced two appointments to the Fair Work Building Industry Inspectorate (FWBII).

Mr Nigel Hadgkiss has been appointed as Director, and the Hon. John Lloyd PSM has been appointed as the Chair of the FWBII Advisory Board.

“Mr Hadgkiss and Mr Lloyd bring a great depth of experience to their roles, particularly having formerly been Deputy Commissioner and Commissioner respectively, of the Australian Building and Construction Commission (ABCC),” Senator Abetz said.

“The Government has committed to the re-establishment of the ABCC and Mr Hadgkiss and Mr Lloyd will steer the FWBII during the transition.”

“We need a strong watchdog to maintain the rule of law and improve productivity on Australian building sites and construction projects.”

“The previous Government replaced the ABCC with the FWBII - a regulator with weaker powers. We must get the balance right which is why it’s important we return to the ABCC, underpinned by provisions put in place in 2005.”

“When the ABCC existed, the performance of the building and construction sector improved. For example, an independent study by Independent Economics found that:

Industry productivity rose by 9.4 per cent during the Building Industry Taskforce and ABCC era (between 2002 and mid-2012);

Australian consumers were better off by about $7.5 billion per year; and

There was a significant reduction in days lost through industrial action.

"Securing the passage of legislation to re-establish the Australian Building and Construction Commission through Parliament is a key Government priority."

"I thank Deputy President Gostencnik for his service as Director of the FWBII. Mr Gostencnik’s extensive experience in the workplace relations space and stature in the legal fraternity have been and will continue to be of ongoing benefit to the Fair Work Commission and to our nation."

"I also thank Mr Randell Fuller for his dedicated service as the Chair of the Advisory Board," Senator Abetz concluded.

NIGEL HADGKISS

Prior to his appointment Mr Hadgkiss was Director of Construction Code Compliance for the Victorian Government, and Deputy Commissioner of the ABCC between 2005 and 2008. His other roles have included Executive Director of Public Prosecutions in New South Wales and Director of the Commonwealth Building Industry Task Force from 2002 to 2008.

JOHN LLOYD

Mr Lloyd was the Australian Building and Construction Commissioner from 2005 until 2010. Prior to that, he was a Senior Deputy President with the then Australian Industrial Relations Commission, and a senior government official in workplace relations roles for the Commonwealth and Western Australian governments.